REXBURG — Yellowstone Bear World President Courtney Ferguson has defended the safety protocols of his animal park in response to an inquiry by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
“Yellowstone Bear World has a strong safety record, which demonstrates that the training and safety protocols in place are effective, and we expect them to remain that way into the future,” Ferguson wrote in an official response to OSHA.
OSHA opened an inquiry into Bear World after an investigator working for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals reportedly worked at the park and wrote that Bear World had workers in the park in the same space with the bears with only batons and bear spray to defend themselves from the bears.
With Ferguson’s response, OSHA can either expand its inquiry to investigate Bear World or close the matter. According to a statement by PETA, OSHA officials were considering closing the matter, telling PETA on Aug. 2 it believed the safety concerns were no longer present. PETA said, however, that OSHA has told them the case is still open.
PETA called on OSHA to send its own investigators to Yellowstone Bear World, saying the experience of its undercover investigator did not match the conditions described in Ferguson’s response.
In 2021, the Post Register spoke with Jay Pratte, director of animal care, conservation and education at New York’s Utica Zoo and president of Bear Care Group, which trains zoos internationally on how to care for and manage bears. Pratte said he does not enter an enclosure with bears unless absolutely necessary, despite 30 years of experience as a zookeeper.
In a statement to OSHA dated Aug. 12, Pratte said he had reviewed the evidence collected by PETA on Bear World’s safety standards.
“It is my professional opinion that the allegations are sound, and that significant safety risks exist, up to and including severe injury or death of staff, volunteers and members of the public,” Pratte wrote.
Ferguson did not deny that employees work while in close proximity to bears, but said the close contact was necessary to maintain the park and that training prepared the workers for such situations.
“All staff which work directly with the animals undergo safety training from senior staff members,” Ferguson wrote. “Training is an ongoing process for the employees. Much of the animal keeper staff training is done on site and on the job in a mentoring model. The senior team members will work closely with incoming staff to get a gauge of the comfort level as a well as a base knowledge of animal husbandry of incoming staff members. After the initial introduction, tasks and job responsibilities are added as the staff members’ confidence and competence improves.”
Ferguson added that employees are required to work in teams, carry a radio for communication and have transportation ready when working in the bear enclosure.
Pratte said such practices would not stop a bear from killing a person.
“Pepper spray and a ‘wand’ will not deter a bear intent on interaction or conflict,” Pratte wrote in his response. “Pepper spray is only able to buy a person a moment of time to find an immediate alternate option to save themselves in the case of an incident.”
Pratte is particularly critical of the use of batons, saying Ferguson’s response amounted to an admission, and that the use of force to stop a bear would likely only enrage the animal and make it more aggressive in future encounters.
“Industry standards specifically advise against use of punishment or force in management of bears,” Pratte wrote.
Ferguson denied that staff have direct contact with the bears, saying the batons carried by staff are meant to create distance between them and the animals.
In regard to bites by bear cubs, Ferguson said the cubs do get “fussy” during bottle feeding, but that staff are aware of the risk and that the injuries are not life-threatening.
PETA said it has video of its undercover worker having close contact with bears, including being touched by one, in contrast to the claims made by Ferguson.
“(T)he eyewitness — who was plainly not a senior staff member, having worked at the facility for only three months — was required along with other employees to enter the enclosure for adult black bears, during which time the 2 employees were approached by several bears, including one who touched the eyewitness with his or her snout,” Molly Johnson, PETA’s counsel on captive animal law enforcement, wrote in the organization’s response.
Johnson went on to argue that Ferguson did not dispute the accusations made by the animal rights group or offer to change the park’s policies.
“Rather than outline any actual corrective actions planned or taken to abate these hazardous conditions, Yellowstone Bear World states that it will ‘©ontinue’ its current practices and attempts to justify these practices by stating that the facility ‘is a unique workplace which requires unique training and safety protocols,’” Johnson wrote,
Pratte said standard practices for animal care in zoos require minimal contact between staff. He cites multiple peer-reviewed guides on bear contact, including the Husbandry Manual for the Brown Bear used by accredited zoos, the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries accreditation and care standards, which say contact with bears should be limited due to the threat the animals pose to humans.
Because Bear World is licensed by the USDA instead of being accredited by the Association of Zoos & Aquariums, it is not held to the professional standards.
Pratte argued the issue of worker safety is exasperated by the population density at Bear World, which he said causes stress for the bears, making them more dangerous to humans.
“It is also my expert opinion, based on my extensive experience, that direct contact with any bear species constitutes an unnecessary and avoidable risk to any human involved,” Pratte wrote. “The allegation that Yellowstone Bear World employees are exposed to direct contact with black and brown bears on a regular basis is clearly supported, and constitutes a significant safety risk.”
Pratte ended by writing that Bear World would have to introduce more barriers between staff and the bears in order to address safety concerns.
“Protected contact barriers, secure and protected vehicles, and removal of any proximity to the animals without a protective barrier should be considered appropriate, though not exhaustive, responses,” Pratte writes.